Electrical Engineering becomes Electrical and Computer Engineering at SEAS

Na Li, Winokur Family Professor of Electrical Engineering and former Area Chair for Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), explains what the name change means for the SEAS community. 

Q: Why is SEAS changing the area of Electrical Engineering (EE) to Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE)?

Professor Li: The short answer is: to reflect what we already are.

Over the past 15–20 years, our work has expanded far beyond traditional electrical engineering. Yes, we still care deeply about circuits, devices, photonics, and signals. But a huge part of what we do now is also about computing systems: embedded intelligence, computer architectures, networked control systems, cyber‑physical systems, and the hardware and software that power modern computing.

Electrical and computer engineering is the language the field uses to describe this full stack — from materials and devices, up through circuits and architectures, to systems, algorithms, and control. The new name simply makes that reality visible to students, employers, and peers.

Q: What exactly is “computer engineering” in this context?

Li: In this context, computer engineering refers to the broad set of ideas and technologies that connect computation with physical systems.

Modern computing is no longer only about software, algorithms, or hardware in isolation. It spans a continuous spectrum: devices and circuits, processors and accelerators, embedded systems, sensors, networks, architectures, control, machine learning, and the software and algorithms that make these systems useful.

The name Electrical and Computer Engineering recognizes that our area already contributes deeply to this broader computing ecosystem. Our faculty and students work on topics such as optical interconnects for data centers, energy-efficient architectures, embedded intelligence, cyber-physical systems, power and control systems, and machine learning on constrained hardware. These efforts are naturally connected to work across SEAS, including in computer science, applied physics, applied math, and other areas.

This broader framing captures the full range of opportunities in our area: from the physical foundations of computing to intelligent systems that interact with the world.

Q: How does ECE connect with computer science and other areas at SEAS?

Li: The connection is very natural, and one of the strengths of SEAS is that computing is not confined to a single area.

Computer science, electrical engineering, applied math, applied physics, and other areas all contribute essential pieces to modern computing. The move from EE to ECE gives a clearer name to the portion of that landscape where computation, hardware, physical systems, and real-world deployment meet.

There will naturally be overlap with computer science and other areas, and that is a good thing. Many of the most exciting problems today — sustainable computing, AI hardware, robotics, cyber-physical systems, quantum and photonic computing, embedded machine learning, and trustworthy autonomous systems — require people who can work across traditional boundaries. Some faculty and courses will sit closer to hardware, some closer to algorithms and software, and many will span both.

Our goal is to build a more continuous intellectual spectrum across SEAS, so that students and faculty can move more easily between devices, systems, architectures, algorithms, and applications. 

 Q: Will this change the degree requirements or coursework?

Li: No. The name change is about alignment and visibility, not restructuring.

• The S.B. in Electrical Engineering keeps the “Electrical Engineering” title to maintain ABET accreditation; the degree name does not change.
• The A.B. in Engineering Sciences already has an “Electrical and Computer Engineering” track, so that’s unchanged.
• At the Ph.D. level, the internal “Electrical Engineering” track within Engineering Sciences will be renamed “Electrical and Computer Engineering,” and the application will use that name as well.

The courses, requirements, and existing degrees are not being rewritten. The related undergraduate courses are all renumbered as ECE courses. 

Q: What does the transition mean for the student experience going forward?

Na Li: In many ways, it formalizes what our students are already doing.

Our students take courses like Introduction to Electrical Engineering (ES 50), Systems Programming and Machine Organization (CS 61), Computer Architecture (CS 1460), Digital Design (CS 1410), and VLSI Design (CS 1480), alongside more traditional EE courses in circuits and photonics. Many CS‑numbered courses are taught by ECE faculty; many projects and labs sit right at the boundary of hardware and software.

Calling the area Electrical and Computer Engineering helps our students  — and others — see that full picture. If someone is excited about building the future of computing, from devices and circuits all the way up to intelligent systems, ECE is where that happens at SEAS.